The weather this weekend in Ontario and Quebec is not expected to reach the record highs that blanketed the region Thursday, but any relief will only be relative, with humidex values still expected in the high 30s over the next few days.

"This is definitely still hot …and humidex advisories are still in place," said CBC meteorologist Johanna Wagstaffe.

People lounge in hammocks in a park Thursday in Montreal. ((Paul Chiasson/Canadian Press))

The heat that has dominated much of the country for the last week toppled daily temperature records in a dozen cities each in Ontario and Quebec on Thursday, including the hottest July temperature at Pearson International Airport in Toronto, at 37.9 C, and the hottest day ever in Oshawa, at 37.1 C.

On Thursday night, less humid air moved over southern and eastern Ontario, bringing slightly less oppressive temperatures.

The extreme southwestern tip of Ontario is the exception, with the humidex reaching 40 for a few hours in the Windsor area.

In southern Quebec, there is a high heat and humidity advisory in the Montreal area. Temperatures are expected to break 30 C Friday and Saturday, before dropping to 26 C Sunday. The humidex Friday was expected to approach 40.

In northern Ontario, rain Wednesday and Thursday helped slow some of the more than 100 forest fires burning in the northwest. Much more rain is needed, however, and Wagstaffe said there's a potential for a "good soaking" on Sunday.

P.O.V.

The Maritimes will also remain muggy through the weekend with the humidex in the mid- to high 30s.

Wagstaffe said temperatures are roughly seasonal from British Columbia to Manitoba. In fact, some overnight low temperature records were broken across the northern Prairies overnight Thursday and on Friday.

In the U.S., there's no end in sight to the heat wave stretching from Kansas to Massachusetts. It has been blamed for at least 22 deaths.